Ahmedabad: Women referees have red card ready for pandemic

AHMEDABAD: Priyanka Bhil, 22, is in a deep financial crisis. One of Ahmedabad’s most talented and qualified Category IV football referees, she is struggling to make ends meet during the pandemic.
“My father is a security guard and being the eldest of four children I feel it’s my duty to contribute to my family’s earnings,’’ said Priyanka. Over the past three years, she has blazed a trail by officiating at major contests such as Open Gujarat, Inter-Collegiate, ADFA League, and Times T20 School Soccer.She used to earn Rs 250-400 per match. Then the pandemic shut down sports.
Two other women referees of the city — Saloni Pandya, 20, and Rachana Kamani, 21— have been affected too, albeit without bearing the brunt of a financial hit.
“The Ahmedabad District Football Association (ADFA) has been kind enough to distribute food kits during this hour of need,” said Priynaka. She had represented Gujarat as a defender in the 2019 Senior Women’s National Football Championship in Arunachal Pradesh.
“We have distributed 57 food kits to referees and footballers who were in trouble during the lockdown,” said ADFA general secretary Arun Singh Rajput.
Like Priyanka, Saloni and Rachana took up refereeing in 2017.
“Football was not a profession but a passion, so I do not depend entirely on football for income,” said Saloni, who is studying law. “I too did struggle a lot financially at the beginning of the lockdown as all sources of income froze. The art gallery I was running closed as well. However, things are more stable now. I am more worried about fitness at the moment.” Saloni last officiated at a Senior League ADFA match in February.
“The lockdown has definitely affected all of us as there has been no sporting activity since mid-March,” Rachana said. “So whatever income we earned by refereeing has been exhausted. However, it wasn’t the only source of income for me since I am a freelance graphic designer.”
As for Priyanka, she is determined to become a top-class referee. “Since I am pursuing the physical education course from Anand, I may take up the PT teacher’s role at a school as a shortterm measure,” she said. “My final goal, however, will always be to become a world-class referee and officiate at major championships.”
ADFA’s head referee R V Yadav said: “We are under huge pressure as most of us don’t have any other source of income and we are finding it difficult to sustain ourselves.”